A community of 30,000 US Transcriptionist serving Medical Transcription Industry

Want to hear from happy MTs - NewMT

Posted: Apr 07, 2010

Hello everyone,

I am about to complete my MT training with an online school and I am finding that many people seem very unhappy with their positions, the companies they work for, their pay, etc. I am curious to know just how feasible it is to expect to find a job, be happy with it, and actually make a decent paycheck.

Is there anyone out there who is happy with their current job and is willing to tell me about it? I have been doing lots and lots of research online and have been hard-pressed to find many positive stories. Is this simply because those who are happy are busy working and don't have time to post their positive experiences??

Any input or experiences you care to share would be greatly appreciated. I am finding myself very discouraged lately.

I can spread some happiness - me

[ In Reply To ..]
I have been very happy doing MT for the last 6 years. It is the best paying job I could get with a 1-year certificate. If I have any advice for you it is to start off working in house somewhere, either for a small doctor or a clinic or a hospital. This will give you the necessary help and experience you need to go to a national MTSO if you so choose. Unfortunately MT isn't the magical thing the commercials make it out to be. It is hard to find something at home, with good hours, with good pay, usually you have to give up one of those in order to find a job quickly. My first job out of school was as a rad aid, not even transcription, but it was a job to get me in the door. Then I went to mammo MT then to in-house acute care MT for 5 years, now I work at home for an MTSO. Sometimes you can even find a hospital that will train in house but then let you go home (employee status hourly ROCKS).

Just keep your head up, be professional, and be willing to learn. Don't make excuses for mistakes, own up to them and learn from them and you will be fine.

since you went already through an MT training - best advice

[ In Reply To ..]
you have only 1 option left:

Jump into the pool and try it out yourself!

it's not so bad! - maiden_canada

[ In Reply To ..]
The great thing about being an MT is that if you hate your company, it's amazingly easy to find someone new to work for. For example, my job at MedQuist used to be amazing, but it's been crap for a bit, so I applied for a new job and was hired an hour later. No sweat! Also, I'm a university student, so it's been PERFECT for my schedule. And I make decent wages. I'm probably not ever going to be rich, but I have the flexibility of being able to do what I want, when I want. If working from home isn't working out, then try a hospital job. You'll get as much out of it as you put into it. It's easy to get discouraged when you read a lot of the posts here, and the nature of being an independent contractor in any job field can be challenging, but it can also be exceptionally rewarding, if you let it be.

are you working in Canada? Maybe there it's better - canada?

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

canada, yes - maiden_canada

[ In Reply To ..]
I'm now working in Canada as a Canadian, but for the first many years of being an MT, I worked for American companies. I know that things are different between the two countries, but I've worked both sides of the line, and it doesn't seem that different.

Thanks - NewMT

[ In Reply To ..]
Thank you to those who offered some constructive advice. I was hoping to hear from those who were actually happy with their jobs to receive some encouragement but I see I have definitely landed in the wrong place.

Why ask? Try it out. - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
Every case is unique and different.

Your message is well written and I think you'll have a more positive experience - See message

[ In Reply To ..]
Your own message speaks well for your future success. It demonstrates that you probably have some good skills. Hopefully you got training that included acute care and the various specialties.

When people write other kinds of messages which show that they aren't very careful in their typing or spelling, you just know that they are not going to make it as a medical transcriptionist. Medical transcriptionists care about those things even on message boards like this or in e-mail. It's one of the reasons most of us got into this line of work in the first place. Our messages aren't perfect, but we know the difference between sound-alike words, for example, to, two, too, etc.

You are correct. Most successful MTs are working and rarely post, but if we are unhappy about something or have little or no work, we have lots of time and want to share our misery about whatever it is we're unhappy about.

For me, I'm unhappy about an insurance company and how they treated me. I would like everyone in the world to feel the same way I do about insurance companies. That's human nature. If I got demoted or even fired from a job, I would probably think that's a very bad place to work, even though many other people are happily working there and doing well.

It is possible to do very well in MT if you have the right skills and keep open to changes as they happen, which they will. It has always been that way. Those with the best skills and attitude win. Those who stubbornly insist on doing things their own way when the employer wants it done another way are going to lose. Those who don't keep their skills updated are going to suffer, because the best work is going to go to the people with the best skills, even more than ever before. That's our future, for those who want to be a part of it. For the stubborn or those who don't want to keep up, it is definitely a time to find something else to do. MT is not for everyone.

Want to hear from happy MTs - NewMT

[ In Reply To ..]
Thank you so much for the positive encouragement. I am beginning to realize that a lot of what you are saying is absolutely true. I am feeling much more positive about things, and in fact was hired this week to work for a general(albeit low-paying)transcription company. I took the position just to gain the experience and have since been asked to apply for their affiliate company doing even more transcription. I feel pretty good about things at this point, and I have to trust that it will all work out as it should.

Thanks again!

It will work out :) - MtMe

[ In Reply To ..]
I am here to spread some cheer. I graduated about 18 months ago and started right away at home IC for a company that paid peanuts, doing so to get some acute care experience. I worked there for 6 months, starting at about, oh, $2.50 or so an hour. After about a month, I was making about $10.00 or so. It is now 18 months later. I no longer work for that company but have to say I learned A LOT there. I now IC for another company and average $24.00 to $26.00 an hour. I hope this gives you a better insight into that, with hard work and determination, you CAN make a decent living doing this from home. I LOVE my job. I do think someone here hit the nail on the head when they said that the happy ones are busy working and therefore do not have much time to post positive comments.

Best of luck to you for great success in your new career! Cheers!! :)

That's a great success story. Thanks for posting it - nm

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

you post in your comment, see inside - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
I quote:

...."It is possible to do very well in MT if you have the right skills and keep open to changes as they happen, which they will...."

Excuse me, but this is bull....

How do you keep "open" to changes in VR?

There are 2 methods: Make the corrections using the foot pedal and mouse OR use the shortcuts.

Till now it could not be decided and determined which method allows to reach a higher production.

It depends what works better for every person.

The highest MT skills applied to VR cannot compensate for the 50% reduction in the cpl rate.

And I do not even want to mention EMR!

I disagree with you because I know it's possible to do very well with VR editing - but respect your right to your opinion

[ In Reply To ..]
It's possible to make more with VR editing than with straight transcription.

Talk to some of the graduates of the school you attend - See message

[ In Reply To ..]
I'm happy, but that doesn't mean much as far as your future success.

You'll find that graduates of some schools tend to be happier than graduates of others. Find out where some of your school's graduates went to work and how they like it. If nobody at your school got a job or is happy, you may be headed for the same situation. Then again, you may be the exception, a graduate from a good school who just doesn't do well in MT or a graduate from a school with few success stories, but you do well anyway.

Your own personal success is largely dependent on your own skills and your attitude. Good luck with your new career!

this is all irrelevant if companies post on their - no newbies, please

[ In Reply To ..]
pre-employment test sites:

"Newbies do not need to apply"
"No newbies, please."
"At the time being we do not hire beginners."
Etc....

and do not even give newbies a chance to show their promising abilities to become a good MT.

There is a big difference between a newbie and a newbie, but companies usually put all in the same pot.

Not really. They make some exceptions, as many of us know from personal experience - nm

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

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